GENERAL QUESTIONS

It's a tax-advantaged way for families to save money for college tuition and education-related expenses as well as K-12 tuition expenses for private, public, and religious schools. The "529" refers to the section of the Internal Revenue Code that created these plans.

Any U.S. citizen with a U.S. address or resident alien with a U.S. address can open an account, and so can trusts, corporations, and other organizations. There are no income limitations or age restrictions.

You can start with as little as $25 if you enroll in our Automatic Monthly Contributions program. If you're starting with a one-time contribution, the minimum requirement is $250.

You can complete your application online anytime. Just click here to get started now. Also, you can download the forms, complete them, and mail them to us. Or you can request a kit be mailed to you. In addition, you can open an account through your PFD application or over the phone by calling us at 1-866-277-1005.

Only one person—referred to as the account holder—can open and control an account. If the account holder is a minor, a custodian must act on the minor's behalf. Each account may have only one beneficiary (future student), but you can open as many accounts for as many beneficiaries as you want.

Any U.S. citizen or resident alien, including the account holder, can be a beneficiary. The beneficiary must be an individual, not a trust or corporation. There are no income limitations or age restrictions. In fact, if you're thinking of going back to school, you can even open an account for yourself!

That answer varies from school to school. Typically, 529 plans aren't treated as an asset of the student. Any investments, however, may affect eligibility for need-based aid. Check with the schools you're considering to learn what their guidelines are.

You don't have to be an Alaska resident to participate, so you can continue to maintain your account and make contributions no matter where you live. And, if you participate in the plan for two years, you may be eligible to receive resident tuition rates at the University of Alaska, even though you've moved out of state.

GoTuitionSM Gifting Portal

Yes. With the UA College Savings Plan you have the added benefit of enrolling in the GoTuitionSM gifting portal. It’s a simple way friends and family can turn traditional gift giving into the gift of an education and help you reach your college savings goals.

TheGoTuitionSMgifting portal is an online gifting tool in which an account holder creates a gifting profile for their beneficiary that can be shared with friends and family and enables you to receive gifts directly to your beneficiary’s UA College Savings Plan account.

No. GoTuition is a value-add service for UA College Savings Plan account holders. There are no fees assessed for using the gifting portal or towards any gift contributions given through the portal by gifters.

To get started, log into your UA College Savings Plan account. Click the GoTuitionSMgifting portal link and follow the instructions to sign up, which include accepting the Terms and Conditions. From there you can create your personalized gifting profile for one or more of your beneficiaries and share the link with family and friends through social media, email, text, evites, or even on printed invitations.

Yes, if you would like contributions to go into multiple beneficiary accounts you would need to establish a gifting profile for each beneficiary. Each beneficiary will have their own personalized gifting link. No matter how often you update their profile page, the URL will remain constant and never expire.

Your beneficiary’s gifting profile welcome message can be customized based on what you would like to say about your child. Some ideas include mentioning your child’s age, grade, or even dreams or aspirations about what they want to be when they grow up. Have a special event or holiday coming up? Highlight that event and share with friends and family so they know just what to give your child. Remember you can change your profile as often as you like which includes updating the message as your child grows or for different times of the year that you would ask for gifts.

You can share the URL for your beneficiary’s gifting profile URL however you wish. There are links that quickly help you share with Facebook, Twitter, or via email, but you can also copy and paste the URL into text messages and include on evites and printed invitations.

Looking for the right thing to say? Below are a few sample Facebook and Twitter posts that you can use to help make asking for a gift easier:

We take your security very seriously. The URL you provide does not disclose any account information. The link is the only way a Gifter can access your beneficiary’s profile and contribute the gift into the account you have designated within your gifting profile.

Confirmations will be sent for each gift based on the desired delivery selection (i.e. paperless or regular mail) you’ve indicated on your account. Confirmations are mailed the following business day that the gift was contributed to your account. Please note that if you have not opted in for paperless, it will be subject to U.S. mail delivery times.

Gifts contributions will be posted immediately to your Gift History page which shows both completed and pending gifts. To view this page, log into your UA College Savings Plan account and select “View Dashboard” from the GoTuition gifting tile. From your dashboard, you will be able to select “View Gift History” under the gift total to see list of all gifts received including gifter name, amount of gift, and date given. You can also see GoTuition gift contributions listed in My Accounts under transaction history. The gift contributions will specifically be labeled with a “GoTuition” transaction type.

Ask the account holder if they are enrolled in the GoTuitionSMgifting portal and to send you a link to the gift recipient’s profile. If they are not enrolled in online gifting, you have the option of downloading a Gift Contribution Slip to send your gift.

The gift submittal process is simple and easy to follow. Once you receive a link to the beneficiary’s gifting profile, enter your personal banking credentials using our secure banking process, and select the account that the gift will be contributed from. None of your banking information will be stored. Next provide an email address to receive a gift notification, enter the gift amount, and hit submit.

The minimum gift is $25, while the maximum one-time gift you can send is $100,000. If the total amount you’ve given during the year for a particular beneficiary exceeds the federal gift tax exclusion limit, you may be subject to a federal gift tax (although 529 plans do permit a taxpayer to average larger gifts out over future years up to five years). Please consult with your tax advisor to discuss your specific situation.

In order to send gifts via the GoTuition Gifting Portal, you must have an active bank listed in the bank validation system. If your bank is not listed, you will need to submit the gift via a Gift Contribution Slip at this time. New banks are continuously being added, so check back. Your bank may have been added.

During the gift submittal process you will have the opportunity to provide your email address. A gift notification email will be sent to that email address confirming the gift has been sent. It will take anywhere from three to five business days for the gift to clear your bank.

The account holder will receive a confirmation approximately one to three days following receipt of the gift. If you would like the gift recipient to be aware of the gift ahead of that timeframe, or just would like a gift announcement to deliver to the recipient personally, please feel free to use one of our gift cards.

Total combined contributions for any one beneficiary can go up to $475,000. Please note that it's okay for earnings to take your total account balance over that amount. The maximum contribution may or may not cover all college expenses.

Yes. You may automatically contribute half of a PFD by answering "Yes" to the UA College Savings Plan question when completing your PFD application. All PFD recipients who contribute through this process become eligible for the $25,000 Scholarship Account Giveaway.

To contribute the other half of your PFD, complete and mail in the PFD Direct Deposit Form, prior to completing the PFD application. Then, when you fill out your PFD application, answer “Yes” to question 6, to contribute the first half of your PFD. To contribute the second half, enter the routing and account number provided on the PFD Direct Deposit Form into the direct deposit section of your PFD application. After completing this process once, the second half of the PFD will go into the college savings account every year, or until you change your direct deposit information.

Yes. Half of anyone's PFD can be contributed automatically. Start by answering "Yes" to question 6 on their PFD application. When the PFD applicant receives notification from us confirming the upcoming PFD contribution, he or she should send a letter of instruction directing us to place the PFD contribution in the proper account. The letter must include the appropriate SSN as well as your account number and portfolio name. For each ensuing year a PFD is received, it will automatically be invested in the account unless we receive other instructions.

Certainly! Friends and family may contribute to your 529 account. It is a great gift idea for holidays and birthdays. You can enroll in the GoTuitionSM gifting portal and send them a link to your child's profile to give a gift online or they can use the Gift Contribution Slip.

Yes, you can move money at any time during your Upromise membership. You must send a letter requesting to withdraw contributions from your Upromise account. Your letter must include your full name and the exact amount you intend to withdraw (up to your total Upromise balance). Pending contributions are not eligible.

If your withdrawal request is more than $200, Upromise requires a Signature Guarantee certifying that your signature is genuine. Your bank can usually provide one. Withdrawal letters should be sent to:

Upromise
ATTN: Customer Care
P.O. Box 55555
Boston, MA 02205-5555

Since checks are mailed every calendar quarter, you should receive your Upromise funds within 12 weeks.

*This information is provided as a service to our Web site visitors. The UA College Savings Plan is not affiliated with, does not endorse, and is not endorsed by Upromise.

Distributions

You can request a distribution over the phone by calling 1-800-478-0003, or you can complete a Request a Distribution Form and submit it by mail. Additionally, you may request distributions online (except from the ACT Portfolio) by logging into your account. Please allow up to two weeks for processing and mail time.

You can take a distribution from your account anytime but if you have a payment deadline, you should request your distribution at least two weeks before your payment deadline to ensure there is adequate time for us to process and mail your distribution.

Yes! If you provide us with your beneficiary's UA ID number, we can transfer the funds electronically to his or her account at UA. Please make your request at least two weeks prior to your payment deadline.

Tax Benefits

Not from federal taxes. In some cases, they may be deductible from state income tax. For example, Pennsylvania, Maine, Arizona, Kansas, Montana, Missouri, and Minnesota provide for state tax parity, whereby contributions to any 529 plan are eligible for the state's income tax deduction. Consult your tax professional for more information.

Federal gift tax - Gifts to an individual that exceed $15,000 in a single year are subject to the federal gift tax. However, for 529 plans, gifts of up to $75,000 ($150,000 for a married couple) can be made in a single year and can be exempted when averaged over five years of tax returns.

Federal estate tax - If you die and there is money remaining in your account, it will be excluded from your estate for tax purposes. (There are exceptions, however, if your contributions were being averaged over five years as described above.)

Changes to an Account

Yes, at any time. Or you can transfer a portion of your investment to another beneficiary—for example, if you have another child. Please note that the new beneficiary must be a member of the previous beneficiary's family, as defined by the IRS.

Generally, yes, although special rules may apply to accounts with custodians. You can also name a successor account holder to take over for you in the event of your death, or if you are declared legally incompetent.

Our eight enrollment-based portfolios are targeted to the expected college enrollment date of the beneficiary. These portfolios have more exposure to equities when the beneficiary is young and shift automatically to more conservative allocations as he or she approaches college age. Assets are moved to the Portfolio for College in the year corresponding to the name of the portfolio. For example, Portfolio 2021 moves to the Portfolio for College in the year 2021.

This balanced portfolio offers many special benefits. It has a UA Tuition-Value Guarantee, which locks in UA tuition value. If you invest in this portfolio, each contribution you make locks in tuition credits for future use at UA.

Each time you contribute to a beneficiary's account, you can select a different portfolio. You are allowed two reallocations between investment options in your 529 plan per calendar year. If you have already made two reallocations on your account this year, you cannot make another change until next year.

A 0.05% annualized Trust Fee is charged to each portfolio, except the ACT Portfolio. Each portfolio bears its share of the expenses of the underlying mutual funds in which it invests. The trustee fee and underlying mutual fund expenses are reflected in each portfolio's unit price.

Eligible Education Expenses and Institutions

You can use the funds for any purpose. However, to enjoy the full federal tax benefits, you either have to use the assets for tuition expenses up to $10,000 per beneficiary per year across all accounts at K-12 public, private, or religious schools, or you have to use the assets for qualified expenses at an eligible higher education institution as defined by the IRS. Such expenses include:

Use the Federal School Code Search on the FAFSA Web site (www.fafsa.ed.gov) to search for a complete list of eligible colleges, universities, and vocational schools. In addition, the UA College Savings Plan can now be used to pay for tuition expenses at K-12 public, private, and religious schools (FAFSA codes are not assigned for K-12 schools).

The distribution may be subject to federal and state income taxes plus a 10% federal penalty. There are cases, such as in the event of a scholarship, appointment to a military academy, disability, or death of the beneficiary, where the distribution would not be subject to the 10% penalty, but may be subject to income taxes. Please see the Plan Disclosure Document for more information.

No. The distribution may be subject to federal and state income taxes plus a 10% federal penalty.

If you are not an Alaska resident, you should compare this Plan with any 529 college savings plan offered by your home state or your beneficiary's home state and consider, before investing, any state tax or other state benefits, such as financial aid, scholarship funds, and protection from creditors that are only available for investments in the home state's plan. You can call 1-866-277-1005 or visit the forms section of our site to request a Plan Disclosure Document, which includes investment objectives, risks, fees, charges and expenses, and other information that you should read and consider carefully before investing. T. Rowe Price Investment Services, Inc., Distributor/Underwriter.